With the recent development and progress in nanotechnology, it has been apractice to handle cells, proteins, genes and so on at a level of several individuals. As a result, it becomes necessary to inject and treat microsamples into containers (wells) for reaction, analysis or detection. To carry out a series of reactions, analyses, detections, etc. on microchips, use is sometimes made of a structure wherein a plural number of wells are connected to each other each via a pipe, a groove or a channel. In such a case, attention should be taken to prevent the migration of a sample into the adjacent well due to the injection pressure, which brings about some difficulties not only in manual operations but also in operations with the use of an automatic injection device. It is also desired to adjust the position of a sample injected into a microwell or to transfer the sample into the next well while adjusting the position.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a structure to be used in the above-described apparatus whereby, in the step of injecting a microsample into a well, the migration of the sample into another well or overflow from the well can be certainly prevented. It is another object of the present invention to provide a structure wherein the position of an injected sample in a well can be adjusted or the sample can be transferred into the next well under controlling. It is still another object of the present invention to provide a microsample treatment apparatus wherein a sample can be injected and transferred under automated control.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for detecting chemotaxis of cells or separating chemotactic cells with the application of the structure having the functions as described above.